DescriptionThis large rodent is an amphibian mammal. The muzzle is blunt, the ears are small, and the legs are short. The tail is broad, oval, flattened horizontally, covered in scales and black. The feet are dark brown to black and have 5 digits each. The rear feet are webbed and the two middle toes have a split nail used for grooming. These attributes allow beavers to swim at speeds of up to eight kilometers an hour. They can remain underwater for 15 minutes without surfacing, and have a set of transparent eyelids that function much like goggles. Their fur is naturally oily and waterproof. The vision is poor, but the hearing and sense of smell are quite developed. Continue reading...

The teeth grow continually which is why they have a need to gnaw on trees regularly.

HabitatBeavers are second only to humans in their ability to manipulate and change their environment. Starting with a small stream they build dams, felling and gnawing trees with their strong teeth and powerful jaws, they create massive log, branch, and mud structures to block streams and turn fields and forests into the large ponds. In these ponds they construct dome like beaver homes, called lodges, of branches and mud. They are often strategically located in the middle of ponds and can only be reached by underwater entrances. Well isolated, the temperature remains above the freezing point even if the outside temperature falls below -35ºC.

The beaver lives in sweet water but the can spend time in brackish water. They are active at night and all winter, swimming and foraging in their ponds even when a layer of ice covers the surface.

FoodThey are herbivores and prefer to eat leaves, bark, twigs, roots, and aquatic plants. In wintertime, they feed on bark from tree trunks that they keep under water, preferably willow, aspen, and birch trees with diameters less than 10 cm.

ReproductionBeaver pairs are monogamous, staying together for many seasons seasons. The female is in estrus in January-February and have one litter of maximum 6 kits but generally 1-3. The young stay with the parents for about 2 years. In the lodges, beavers live in colonies of up to 12 family members, consisting of one breeding adult pair, young of the year, yearlings, and sub-adults. The dominant female decides when it is time for the young to travel outside the den and when the young need to disperse and form their own colony.

Human Impact and StatusThe Beaver was hunted to near extinction both for fur and for castoreum, a secretion of its scent gland believed to have medicinal properties. Re-introduced in a number of areas it is now abundant. CLOSE